- Wakaba Festival
- [Toyokawa-City]
- Date : 4/7/2018 to 4/8/2018
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- 【The world's strangest festival】
This festival, also known as the Unagoji Festival, is held by the Ushikubo Hachiman-sha Shrine on a Saturday and Sunday near April 7th and 8th. The festival dates back to the times of Makino Shigetoki (Kohaku) who lived during the Sengoku period, and the original style of the festival held today is believed to have been established in the early 18th century.
Festival events are performed in the shrine grounds and along the way as the portable shrine parades from the Hachiman-sha Shrine to Tenno-sha Shrine. In the Yoi Festival held on Saturday, tasseled standards symbolizing each group of Ushikubo lead a procession from the Hachiman-sha Shrine to the Tenno-sha Shrine, which gets the Shishigashira (a mask for the lion dance). In the Main Festival held on Sunday, in addition to the standards from each group of Ushikubo, the procession includes Hayashiguruma floats from Kamiwaka-gumi and Shimonaka-gumi, a Kamikoguruma float from Kamiko-gumi (Uramachi), the portable shrine in between them, and a Sasa dance performed by Sasa-gumi (Teramachi). The Yanyo-gami who follow at the tail of the procession lie down wherever they like. As the procession reaches the Tenno-sha Shrine, the standards line up and a Kamiko dance and Sasa dance are performed. Near the Hachiman-sha Shrine, the Oyama floats from Kamiwaka-gumi and Shimowaka-gumi parade along the Tokiwa-dori to the shrine in the morning, and while the portable shrine is carried to and fro, small children dressed in Karako costumes lean over the balustrade of the Oyama floats and dance like Karakuri puppets to the sound of Kakure-daiko drumming, which attracts the attention of the spectators. At the end of the festival, all the floats and dancers gather at the shrine, where the Kamiko dance, Sasa dance, and Kakure-daiko drumming are performed one after another, and the festival reaches a climax in the ""Mitsuguruma"" performance where the young men run around holding the standards.
Photo Gallery
Photo
Festival Overview
Overview
| Date | 4/7/2018 to 4/8/2018 |
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| Time | Yoi Festival: From 15:30 to 20:30, Main Festival: From 12:00 to 21:00 |
| Venue | Ushikubo Hachiman-sha Shrine（Tokiwa 164, Ushikubo-cho, Toyokawa City） |
| Phone number | 0533-89-2206（Toyokawa City Tourist Association） |
Access / Map
Access / Map
| Access by public transport | 8 minutes' walk from JR Iida Line Ushikubo Station. |
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| Access by car | 7 minutes by car from Toyokawa I.C. |